Municipal fire department · Louisiana · United States

New Orleans Fire Department

The New Orleans Fire Department (NOFD) protects the City of New Orleans — approximately 385,000 residents across roughly 170 square miles, much of it at or below sea level between the Mississippi River and Lake Pontchartrain. The department fields about 580 uniformed members from around 31 fire stations and provides structural fire suppression, technical rescue, hazardous materials response, marine firefighting on the Mississippi (one of the busiest working rivers in the United States), and aircraft rescue and firefighting at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (the airport operates its own dedicated ARFF division as well; NOFD coordinates mutual aid). The historical and present-day risk profile is shaped by dense French Quarter and uptown wood-frame housing stock, a working port, petrochemical exposure on the lower Mississippi corridor, and hurricane response — Hurricane Katrina (2005) reshaped how the department plans for catastrophic events. EMS first response is provided alongside New Orleans EMS, the separate municipal ambulance agency. Firefighter recruitment is administered by the New Orleans Civil Service Department. The process typically includes a civil service examination, the Candidate Physical Ability Test (CPAT), medical and psychological evaluation, background investigation, and an interview. Successful candidates attend the NOFD Training Academy. Bluewatch refers candidates to the Civil Service portal.